Geneva: Steep cuts to health aid, projected to drop by up to 40% this year compared to two years ago, are causing the most severe disruptions to global health systems since the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the World Health Organization’s latest analysis.
Lifesaving medicines are piling up in warehouses, health workers are losing jobs, clinics are closing, and millions are missing critical care. Yet, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus sees an opportunity in this crisis: a chance to shift from aid dependency to health sovereignty, self-reliance, and solidarity. Speaking at a media briefing today, he highlighted the Accra Compact and the SUSTAIN initiative, launched at the Africa Health Sovereignty Summit in Accra alongside Ghana’s President John Mahama, to promote country-led, investment-driven health systems aligned with the Lusaka Agenda’s “one plan, one budget, one report” framework.
WHO is supporting countries to mobilise funds and enhance health system efficiency, urging governments to invest in health, creditors to offer fair lending terms, and donors to strengthen national systems rather than creating parallel ones. “Health is not a cost to be contained—it is an investment in people, stability, and prosperity,” Dr. Tedros emphasised.
In Gaza, nearly two years of bombardment have left people with limited access to basic services, repeated displacement, and a food supply blockade. Malnutrition is rampant, with 12,000 children under five identified as acutely malnourished in July—the highest monthly figure ever recorded. Since January, 99 people, including 29 children under five, have died from malnutrition, likely an underestimate. Diseases like meningitis (418 suspected cases) and Guillain-Barré syndrome (64 cases) are spreading due to overcrowding and deteriorating water, sanitation, and hygiene conditions. Since October 2023, WHO has facilitated the medical evacuation of 7,522 patients, including 15 critical child patients, to Jordan with 42 companions on August 6.
Yet, over 14,800 patients still urgently need specialised care. WHO calls for countries to accept more patients, expedited evacuations, and unimpeded humanitarian aid flow, including food and medical supplies, via all routes. Since June 25, WHO has delivered 68 trucks of medical supplies, including essential medicines, blood, and trauma supplies, but this is a fraction of the need. Overwhelmed hospitals lack basic supplies, and a recent attack on the WHO’s warehouse and guesthouse, alongside displacement orders near its Gaza City warehouse, threatens operations. WHO demands protection for health workers, patients, civilians, and its detained colleague (held since July 21, 2025), the release of hostages with medical care, and an immediate ceasefire for lasting peace.
In Sudan, unrelenting violence has driven widespread hunger, disease, and suffering. Reports from El Fasher indicate people are eating animal feed to survive, with famine confirmed in parts of the country. About 770,000 children under five are expected to suffer severe acute malnutrition this year, with WHO-supported nutrition centres treating over 17,000 severely malnourished children in the first six months. Cholera outbreaks have affected all states, with nearly 100,000 cases since July 2024. WHO-backed oral cholera vaccination campaigns have been conducted in states like Khartoum, North Kordofan, and Sennar, showing a declining trend, but gaps in disease surveillance and recent floods threaten progress, potentially fueling cholera, malaria, and dengue outbreaks. WHO has prepositioned medicines, trained rapid response teams, and strengthened disease surveillance and water sanitation interventions, but limited access and funding—less than one-third of the needed amount—hinder efforts. Dr. Tedros stressed that peace is the best medicine for Gaza, Sudan, and other conflict zones to halt hunger, displacement, and disease.
On mpox, nearly a year after the WHO declared a public health emergency over an upsurge in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other African countries, over 30,000 cases and 119 deaths have been reported globally in 2025. Twenty-three African countries are currently affected, with clade Ib causing outbreaks in new regions and clade IIb expanding in West Africa. While mortality rates are low, immunocompromised patients, especially those with uncontrolled HIV, face high risks. WHO has expanded diagnostic capacity, deployed over 500 experts, delivered 3.2 million vaccine doses to 12 countries via the mpox Access and Allocation Mechanism, and collaborated with over 100 organisations for risk communication. However, aid cuts are hampering efforts. WHO’s mpox recommendations are extended for another year, with the Emergency Committee meeting next month to reassess the emergency status.
Amid ongoing negotiations for a legally binding global treaty on plastic pollution in Geneva, WHO urges governments to include enforceable health protections. Plastic pollution poses growing risks to human health and the environment, particularly for vulnerable groups like workers, children, and communities near extraction and disposal sites. Hazardous chemicals in plastics, including endocrine disruptors, are linked to hormonal imbalances, reproductive disorders, infertility, kidney disease, cancer, obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular risks. WHO calls for a strong treaty to safeguard health.
This week, World Breastfeeding Week highlights breastfeeding’s role in ensuring baby health, development, and survival, while reducing maternal risks of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. Only 48% of newborns under six months are exclusively breastfed globally. WHO advocates for high-quality maternal care, skilled breastfeeding counselling, and supportive environments at home, health facilities, and workplaces.
WHO has designated Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom’s national regulators as WHO-listed authorities for meeting top standards in medical product regulation, and expanded approval for South Korea’s regulator. With 70% of countries facing weak regulatory systems, WHO-listed authorities enhance access to quality-assured medical products. Dr. Tedros also paid tribute to the late David Nabarro, a global health champion and mentor, expressing condolences to his family and friends.
– global bihari bureau
